Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1887-12-21

And whispers Of a storm.
The night will soon be gathering FAST
E'urn back my dappled mare;
feel the old chain round my heart,
I can not outride care.
How ! Met and Courted the Present
Mrs Grimes,
It amt every man that has a
chance to see the worst side of his
wife's character afore marriage and
the sweetness after. But I bein' a
tinman, with as good an outfit as
travels a New England road, billers,
pants, brooms, teakettles. an all sorts
O nick-nacks, bein' included, get a
pretty good back view of whot learned
folks call society. An it was along O
follerin' my trade in this fashion that
/ first saw the present Mrs. Grimes.
She was at the wash tub, an the
suds was flying for all they wa worth.
She looked pretty, too, though you
might not think it from the work she
was at, for she had red hair and the
water he'd made it curl around the
forehead, an the rubin he'd made her
cheeks rosy, an something I'll tell OF
when get to it he'd made her eyes
snap.
1t was one of those big houses in
suburb she was doin' work at as
third girl, to help the old folks back
on the farm. She could a-gone into q
mill to work, but somehow she didn',
take so kindly to mill work, she told
ME afterwards, as she did to homework
even if homework was more drudgin
and confnin'.
The back yard TO this house was ;
green sort o place, with lots o bushe
an trees afore you got in full sigh
O. the kitchen door, an when I'd go
where | was pretty near good view
O. the premises, an afore | could ge
; another sight O the little woman a
the tub, l heard some body say, will
lots o solid meanin' in the tones:
"You do that again, an I'll do som
thing more than talk-now mind!"
! stepped out in full view O. matter;
an there little mite o riggedup bah
hood was spillin' dirt into the wasbtut
1t was an aggravatin' thing. an
know jest how that little woman fell
, There she was a-working away 70
I dear life-for it was late an l coult
sec there was still big pile O. clothe
unwashed-an' that little wretcl
agrinnin' an THROWN in fists full O
, dirt. LEST wondered what ed happen
. AS | kept comm nearer the house
! the young rascal ran out for anothe
handful, an with face at me skippe
back lively as cricket, anticipatin
no doubt, the fun of more scoldin'.
: But he missed his calculations
He hadn't no more than put his inver
ted body close to the tub than tn
little woman he'd been a tormentir
just swooped down on him easy an
swift like, an without a mite o fus
or waste of breath, landed him plum
in the suds-slippers, velvet, dirt ar
all! While you could count, perhap
five, she held him there bleached-ou
little sinner, too completely knocked
o his reckonin' to even cry. The
she set him, all drippin' like browne,
rat, on the floor, an held him fast b
the shoulders.
You've done that times enough,
she said, with grain o tempe
that found it easy to forgive. "ai
no one has stopped you. Now "
taken you in hand, an will see whot'l
come of it. Go tell your mother, an
tell her I'm ready to give her all ex
PLANTATION. Now you 60.
With howl that would have don
credit to a Fejec Islander, the soake
torment started, an his self.constitute
discipliner went to rubin fast al
furious, as if she had still somethin
to work off.
In spite o her temper, sh' uld hav
liked to give her hearty hand-shak'
but l knew enough about suburb folk
e an their relations to their third girl
:. to know such proceedin' wouldn't b
!; prudent; it wouldn't help the third gin
7 mite so / jest travelled back the wa
i l he'd come, without word about bill
I ers or anything else. I felt prett
Is sure the fewer spectators to the seen
/ that would follow, when that young
; ster's mother come down stairs, tn
), better.
NJ The folks in the kitchen saw m,
is but / knew at least one of them woul
d be more comfortabler if ] left, al
wouldn't lay up agin me any leavil
out O. manners. But made it in m
way to call around there an see
they had any rags or old paper the
wanted to swap for tinware.
I'll. th;.d o;rl wasn,t thara onl